Over the last two weeks, my body survived trials and competitive warfare on various pitches. 10 soccer matches from indoor to outdoor and a pair of strength training sessions had me near collapse. In addition to a couple of wacks to the ankles, heels, and nearly blowing out my knee, the physical toll of competition nearly took me down.

Rest days became hours of an ice and heat rotation all over my body; that wasn’t enough. CBD, painkillers, and yoga helped numb the massive build of inflammation but my body was still flashing red on the charge. So the need of fix was nearly dire as I mutated into one of those Walkers from The Walking Dead on each passing day; and not one of the power walkers either.

Cryotherapy is a method that helped in the past however I needed not only a physical release from pain but also a mental one. Enter Float Therapy. This version of healing is fairly simple: Enter a water tank, close the door, and float. Surely there has to be a catch to this.

Well “the catch” is that the water contains 1,000 pounds of salt resulting in the body floating freely. And the pod is closed and you can’t hear ANYTHING from the outside. Why not? I’ll give it a go.

So in between an afternoon strength circuit and match #7, I made an appointment at Transitions Float RVA to get my float on for an hour. The receptionist was very nice and showed me the Float Pod along with giving instructions. Think of the pod as one of those life pods in the movies that would hold a dying hero or villain until opened and that figure came to life.

All that I had to do was take a shower, strip off the clothes (yep, COMMANDO!), get into the pod and float on. Two buttons controlled the light and music in the pod. I decided to go dark with music at the lowest level.

The water was warm to my surprise and after a few minutes of acclimatization, I finally got into a comfortable floating state. Looking up in darkness and cut away from society for an hour had my body in a deeply relaxed state. Not thinking about anything or my soccer match in 2 hours, NOTHING. Eventually, I fell asleep in the pod as the music and salty water took me away.

There were moments before I drifted away that I felt my body loosening up and my joints begging to be cracked. I ignored that urge and just floated on. An hour later I was awakened by the pod talking to me (yes the pod talks) stating that it was time to exit the pod. When I reached to lift the door, I already noticed that my arm was a lot more flexible.

No way….did this really work?!?

Sitting up and standing on my own two feet as nearly all of my inflammation melted like hot butter, my joints cracking in relief, and muscles vibrating in arousal. I felt as if I had just had a fun night downtown and a drink too many but clear-headed. Standing in the pod in disbelief that floating for just AN HOUR in a saltwater pod in the dark felt as if I smashed a reset button.

Body nearly pain-free (Felt around 90%), mentally fresh, and smiling & singing in the shower as I washed out the excessive salt off my body. Float Therapy did the trick as I’m typing today after a Sunday of 3 soccer matches (two of them #Back2Back) and not really in significant pain. Of course, I’m tired but pain wise on a scale of 1-10 consider me a 2 on this day.

If you are curious about float therapy/sensory deprivation, here’s a good article from HealthLine discussing the benefits and FAQs. Personally, this entered my Top 3 of body restoration practices alongside cryotherapy and hot yoga. And yes there is a light in the pod if you are afraid of the dark.

Get Your Float On.

“Life is a tide; float on it. Go down with it and go up with it, but be detached. Then it is not difficult.” -Prem Rawat

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